A little girl's birthday wish to help seals came true after friends and family helped her raise $400!

Tiphaine Issaverdens was not interested in receiving toys or clothes for her 5th birthday. Despite prodding from her parents to find out the specific gifts they could give their daughter, Tiphaine insisted on one thing - she wanted people to help marine mammals. So, on October 20, her parents threw her a beautiful birthday party and by the end of the day, Tiphaine had raised $400 for The Marine Mammal Center!

Tiphaine and her parents, Guillaune and Jennifer, visited the Center's gift shop on Oct. 24 and much to the surprise of staff, handed them the generous donation. The Sausalito residents have visited the Center numerous times throughout the year, and Tiphaine immediately fell in love with the seal and sea lion patients she saw. Tiphaine's dad, Guillaune, noted that they thought she might be interested in leaving a message in a bottle to see who would respond across the ocean. Tiphaine, who had just seen the Ghost Below exhibit and had learned about the dangers of ocean trash to marine mammals, told him that she didn't want to pollute the ocean with a floating bottle. Smart girl!

We thank Tiphaine and her parents for the wonderful donation and for being champions for the ocean! If you would like to help our flippered friends, we can help! Click here for a link to tools to help you build your own personal fundraising page - great for parties or other gatherings here or across the ocean!